Lumbar spinal stenosis (“LSS”, and sometimes called sciatica) is a condition of the spine characterized by a narrowing of the lumbar spinal canal. With spinal stenosis, the spinal canal narrows and pinches the spinal cord and nerves, causing pain in the back and legs. One surgical technique for relieving LSS involves distracting adjacent vertebrae and implanting an interspinous process spacer to maintain the desired separation between the segments. This technique is somewhat less invasive than alternative treatments such as decompressive laminectomy, but may actually provide significant benefits to patients experiencing LSS symptoms. As with other surgeries, one consideration when performing surgery to implant an interspinous spacer is the size of the incision that is required to allow introduction of the device. Interspinous spacers previously known to the art were not easily implanted with minimally invasive surgical techniques. A need exists for instrumentation and methods for implanting an interspinous process spacer using minimally invasive surgical techniques.